A very nice write-up, particularly on some of the interesting idiosyncrasies and extra touches of the Wii U browser.

I know you mention that there should be incentive for improved HTML5 support for browser games, but it will be interesting to see if this actually happens. Historically, Nintendo has done everything in its power to dissuade people from playing other companies’ games, and I believe it was Iwata himself once subtly expressed a dislike for web-based games too.

A high number of people are using console browsers to visit websites and probably this number will increase after the launch of the new generation of consoles. It’s important to develop and design websites using those devices in mind even though cross-browser development and testing was already difficult and time consuming.

I bet this would be helpful for game related sites, as people probably visit those after they get stuck in a game. On the 3DS for example you can simply pause your game and go to your browser, returning to your game after you’ve found what you need to know.

I’m not sure what other sites can expect a large amount of traffic from concoles though, but Nintendo’s social network might drive the traffic up a bit.